Hair balls in cats – Symptoms and treatment to eliminate them

One of the most common characteristics of felines is their level of cleanliness, they are animals that they groom themselves frequently, who use the sandbox and can not stand being dirty and who, only very rarely, should bathe.

But keeping a clean of this type without helping our pet has its price, and is that the dreaded hair balls They can become a very serious health problem if they can not be expelled, so the animal will need our help and attention to avoid this condition.

In we explain in detail everything you need to know about hairballs in cats so you can help your feline to be healthy.

Why does my cat swallow so much hair?

The cats they invest a lot of time preening to keep your coat clean and in good condition, a task that can be achieved easily thanks to its special tongue that has small spines that allow you to drag all the fur that falls effectively. The problem is that the animal is not able to spit that hair once you drag it with your tongue, so you have no choice but to swallow it.

When the fur accumulates excessively in the stomach of the animal, it will make the effort to vomit, thus discarding the hair ball. It is a serious problem that has its causes in the lack of brushing and even diseases related to skin and fur.

However, sometimes they do not manage to vomit successfully the hairball because it stays stuck in the intestine producing severe constipation and making it impossible to eliminate it. It is here when it is important to opt for home remedies to help in their expulsion, however if the animal does not get it we must go to the vet urgently.

The weather and the fur of the cat

Although the cat is groomed all year round it is in time of change, that is to say in spring and autumn, when our cat loses more hair, so it is about the moments of the year when there is a greater risk of hairballs becoming a problem.

During these seasons of the year it is important to be very attentive to the behavior of our animal, to monitor if it eats, if it makes its depositions normally and if it is animated, in the same way we will have to help it to the maximum to avoid Less possible accumulation of hair in your stomach following some suggestions that we will give in the following steps. But how do you know if a hairball can not be ejected? Here are the symptoms of this condition.

Symptoms of stuck hairballs

In general, cats expel hairballs through feces and in very serious cases through vomiting. A safe way to allow the cat to purge without risk is to acquire a plant known as catnip, grass for cats or catnip, that in addition to the felines very much will help them to purge themselves when they need it.

But sometimes the animal simply can not eliminate the hairball because it is stuck in your intestine, in this case you will have symptoms like:

• Decay and apathy
• Frequent arcades
• Regurgitations
• Vomiting that expels fluid and food
• Constipation

If this picture continues for more than two days it is essential to take the cat to a veterinarian for a review and diagnosis.

Prevent hairballs

Although grooming is part of the natural behavior of cats and can not and should not be impeded, as owners we can help our animal to prevent hairballs effectively, especially during the molting stages.

To do it is very important brush the cat daily, a task that will help to eliminate to a large extent the hairs that fall and prevent the cat from swallowing them all. It is advisable to start the cat in this habit since childhood, but if your pet is already an adult it may cost you a little more to get used to it, but eventually it will, because when you comb it the cat feels as relaxed as when you pet it. For this task you must acquire a special comb suitable for the type of hair of your pet, it is for sale at any pet store.

Brush our cat It is essential if the same one is of long hair or if it is a feline of advanced age, because during this stage the animal does not have the same energy so it can not preen so effectively.

Effective treatments to eliminate hair balls in cats

If you notice that your cat regurgitates, is decayed and vomits without expelling the balls of hair successfully, it agrees to give him a help. In addition to the catnip or catnip, which as we have explained previously is of great help for the animal, you can also favor the expulsion with these options:

• Smear on the animal’s paw a little vaseline, due to its great cleaning capacity after a few minutes the cat will start licking it by removing and swallowing Vaseline, which will help facilitate the expulsion by decreasing constipation due to the fat of this product.
• If you do not have Vaseline on hand you can also spread butter or malt, equally effective solutions.
• Valerian is another of the plants that we can have at hand at home to help our cat to purge effectively, if the animal has the need not hesitate to bite to get relief from their discomfort.

Of course, if after applying these products you do not see improvement, the ideal will be go to your veterinarian confidence.

If you want to read more articles similar to Hair balls in cats – Symptoms and treatment to eliminate them, we recommend that you enter in our Basic Care section.